We shift back to the Western Conference Finals on Tuesday night, after the Eastern Conference Finals saw the Carolina Hurricanes (1-3) pull off a 3-0 road win over the Florida Panthers (3-1) to extend the series. Tonight's Game 4 is a pivotal one, as the Dallas Stars (1-2) attempt to even the series on the road against the upward-trending Edmonton Oilers (2-1). Below, I'll list the odds for tonight's contest, as well as let you know my favorite NHL bet for this high-stakes matchup north of the border. Puck drop is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. ET from Rogers Place in Edmonton, AB. Here are my top NHL picks for Tuesday.
Tuesday’s NHL Picks & Best Bets: Stars vs. Oilers
(Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)
Dallas Stars (+140) vs. Edmonton Oilers (-166) | O/U 6.5 (+105/-125) NHL Picks
The Oilers are a sizable -166 moneyline favorite to extend their series lead and force an elimination game in Dallas on Thursday. The Stars come back at +140 to even the series. It's worth noting right off the top that the Stars' first-line centerman, Roope Hintz (lower leg), is listed as day-to-day, while the Oilers have the same designations for defenseman Mattias Ekholm (undisclosed) and right-winger Connor Brown (undisclosed).
With all of that being said, I'm going to play the over 6.5 goals in tonight's high-stakes Game 4. Starting with Dallas' Jake Oettinger, he has been pretty shaky over the last three games, allowing 3+ goals in each contest while posting a .842 SV% (64-76). The Stars have also fallen prey to the Oilers' high-octane power play, which went 2-8 (25%) in the last two outings. With the McDavid-Draisaitl duo, which has combined for 43 playoff points (11G, 32A), smelling blood in the water, we should see the Oilers pull their weight in getting this final score over the total.
On the other hand, I'm still not convinced that this Edmonton defense is legit. Their penalty-killing unit is still a liability, ranking 14th out of the 16 playoff teams at 65.85%. Stuart Skinner appears to be finding his footing, but once again, this guy is about as volatile as it gets, bringing in a 2.66 GAA and .902 SV% during the playoffs. Those numbers were 2.81 and .896 during the regular season, respectively.
From what I'm reading as of this writing (late Monday night), it does appear that Roope Hintz is on track to play. He'll provide a much-needed boost to this Dallas offense that ranked fourth in regular-season scoring (3.4 GPG). This feels like a game where the floor is 4-3, so I'll go ahead and jump on the over at 6.5 goals.
Bet: Over 6.5 Goals (+105)
